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Podcasting with The Great Gatsby



Class Level:

11th Grade General Literature

Time Given:
4 Class periods

Goals and Objectives:

- Students will use different reading strategies to read and comprehend a novel: The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald.
- Students will be able to express their thoughts, ideas, opinions and questions verbally after reading a section of The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald.
- Students will be able to successfully create a 2-3 minute podcast voicing their thoughts, ideas, opinions and questions.
- Students will be able to successfully post their podcast to their classroom blog.
- Students will be able to clearly respond to other classmates' podcasts.

Materials:

- The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
- Computer or iPad (with web camera and microphone)
- Podcasting program (Flipgrid, Seesaw, GarageBand, VoiceRecordPro)

Day 1: Procedures

- Introduce the task: Create a 2-3 minute podcast reflecting on The Great Gatsby. Students will use the following prompts to guide the content of their podcast:
  • Which character do you believe is most responsible for the tragedy in the novel? Explain your thoughts.
  • Who do you believe is a hero? Who is a villain? Why?
  • What do you believe was Fitzgerald's message about America?
  • What is your overall opinion on the novel and what led you to that conclusion?
  • Make sure you are providing multiple textual references to back up your answers! These can be direct quotes or paraphrasing, but delineate either way.

- Discuss the important tips about making podcasts (such as a quiet room, distance from microphone)
- Introduce and explore the podcasting program that you have chosen to use with the class
- Provide mind map/graphic organizer so students can outline their thoughts (such as this one from Scholastic )
- Begin sketching out an outline/ideas for the podcast

Day 2: Procedures

- Have students finish outline for the podcast
- Teacher checks with groups as they finish to make sure their outline is sufficient
- Provide quiet areas for students to record and edit their podcasts

Day 3: Procedures

- Students should finish recording and editing their podcasts in quiet areas
- Students should post podcasts to student blog

Day 4: Procedures

- Assign students to listen to 4 podcasts. This will include person who sits in front of and in back of them and 2 others classmates of their choosing
- Have student make comments on the students blogs
- Student comments should be conversational, and not just "Great idea" or "I like it!" For guidelines on how to comment appropriately, students will look here

Evaluation:

Rubric for Assignment